Central Park Hoodie

And now, for a knitting post. Currently on my needles is Heather Lodinsky's Central Park Hoodie. I've done several sweaters for my niece, but never for an adult. This is probably my largest undertaking yet, but so far it's going just fine. I agonized over the yarn I'd use for a long time...several months! I wanted to do this pattern, and I wanted to use nice yarn, because I knew if I picked yarn I wasn't 100% in love with, I would do all that work and never wear it. Cascade 220 and Knit Picks City Tweed had been the main contenders until I decided to just take the plunge with Tahki Donegal Tweed- the yarn recommended in the pattern. Duh.

Then there was the question of my LYS vs. Webs, over an hour away. I decided to take a trip to my local store just to see if this was the yarn I wanted- touch it, etc. I walked up to the display, they had the color I wanted, and in the exact amount I needed. The yarn gods were rooting for me, so I picked it up, using my discount for being a student in the shop. Took it home, whipped up a swatch- Dead on! Then, my $90 worth of perfect yarn sat in a bag for six months. I bought the yarn in September of 2009, but had to begin my Christmas knitting shortly after buying it. Christmas knitting kept me busy (and I was working on some of them literally Christmas morning- luckily, a stomach bug kept my brother's family away for

several days, which bought me some extra knitting time to finish my niece's hat and mittens!) and unable to start. Then, when the gifts were done, I started right in on a blanket for another niece, due to arrive at the end of January. She was 6 weeks old by the time I finally got it to her. Then, and only then, did I finally start my CPH- March 30, 2010. It went quite quickly. Now, the back is done and the bottom ribbing for the left side is done and I'm ready to begin the pattern.

Movie MeMe

Well, this has absolutely nothing to do with knitting or raising chickens, but I was in the mood to do it and thought it might be a good ice-breaker, since it's been about a year since I posted. You'll probably think less of me for the quality of movies that I enjoy.


Name a film that you have seen more than 10 times.
Dirty Dancing

Name a film that you’ve seen multiple times in the cinema.
I saw both Twilight and New Moon twice, as well as Titanic when I was 12.

Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a film.
Colin Firth, Gerard Butler, Patrick Dempsey

Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a film.
Less likely? Not sure, but probably someone who does a lot of action-adventure-car-crashing-beat-them-up type movies.

Name a film that you can and do quote from.
Dirty Dancing! Nobody puts baby in a corner. (That's probaby one of the most commonly quoted lines, but I have many others. I carried a watermelon! You just put your pickle on everybody's plate, college boy. Remind me not to take my honeymoon in Niagra Falls. So, you'll go to Acapulco! etc...)

Name a film musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs.
I'm pretty sure I know all the songs in The Sound of Music.

Name a film that you would recommend everyone see.
Something that everyone should see? Hm... Maybe the Harry Potter series? It's such a cultural icon that most people would probably enjoy it. At least the first one.

Ever walked out of a film?
No, but I was about ready to during the beginning of the remake of The Dukes of Hazzard, when the Duke boys opened the door to the General. What?!? Door opening!? I don't think so.

Name a film that made you cry in the cinema.
None, really.

Popcorn?
I prefer to smuggle my own Mike and Ike's in. Preferably the Lemonade flavors.

How often do you go to the cinema (as opposed to renting them or watching them at home)?
We go a lot...at least 1-2 times a month.

What’s the last film you saw in the cinema?
Saw "Hot Tub Time Machine" this weekend. Wasn't my choice, but it ended up being less stupid than I expected.

What’s your favorite/preferred genre of film?
Romantic Comedy.

What’s the first film you remember seeing in the cinema?
I've been told I saw Snow White or something in the theater, but I don't remember it. The first movie I remember going to was The Lion King with my dad, when I was 9.

What film do you wish you had never seen?
Looking back, I don't know if there's one that I actually regret seeing, but I know that I absolutely can't sit through an entire showing of any of the Lord of the Rings, or the Matrix. No thank you!

What is the scariest film you’ve seen?
Ugh, The Ring. I HATE scary movies. I was traumatized by the Sixth Sense.

If you could be any character portrayed in a movie, who would it be?
Renee Zellweger in Bridge Jones Diary.

Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Oh jeez, can I include downloads on my computer too? Probably around 30.

Last film you bought.
Actually bought? New Moon. I rarely buy DVDs. I have netflix and the internet.

Last film you watched.
Watched some of the Bounty Hunter.

Five films that mean a lot to you.
That mean a lot to me? Well, they aren't deeply meaningful or life-changing, but i'd say:
1. Dirty Dancing
2. The Harry Potter series
3. The Twilight Saga
4. Bridget Jones Diary
5. The 1995 BBC Broadcast of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth

What are your favorite movies?

Evicted!

The girls got their eviction notice last Sunday. They've since vacated the basement family room and are living full-time in their coop, albeit with their brooder. The brooder (an old pet rat cage) is in the coop with the door open, so they are free to come and go from the brooder into the main part of the coop as they please. They tend to get back in the brooder at night to sleep. Their food and water and main roost is still in the brooding cage, as is the concentration of warmth from the heat lamp. At five weeks of age, they are still at a constant 70°. They are enjoying having access to their run though, and from about 7:30am until 8:30pm, they have free access to the enclosed run attached to the coop. I think its safe to say they are enjoying their space! They are also, thankfully, outgrowing their awkward teenage years and are starting to look like chickens. I've noticed some new sounds coming from them as well, which sound more like chickens and less like chirping baby chicks. They're growing so fast!

Chicken's Day Out

The girls are getting big now, and with big, comes ugly. They've lost all their cute and fuzzy baby chick appeal, and are now smack in the middle of their awkward "Dinosaur" teenage years. They are quickly out growing the second-hand rat cage they live in as a brooder, and it wont be long before they live outside in their coop. They now have a roost in their brooder, which they love to get up and perch on, and I'm glad they got the hang of it quickly. I've read stories about chicken keepers who had to put their chickens on the roost each night, and basically "put them to bed." Also hoping they don't freak out when they no longer have their heat lamp casting a red glow on them 24/7.
I took Lucy out last night to take some outdoor shots. Pictures of a chicken inside my house just doesn't seem right. She enjoyed her time in the mulch bed, picking at it and taking a few big "learning to flutter" jumps. She's actually the smallest of my four, so this picture isn't a good representation of their size- they're bigger than this looks!

Welcome!

No, this isn't a blog about a knitting chicken, nor is it about knitting sweaters for chickens. I've simply combined two separate aspects of my life into one blog topic, which I naively assumed would be fairly unique. A google search proved me wrong on that one. Apparently knitting and keeping chickens go hand in hand.
I plan on posting knitting progress and projects, as well as updating on my chickens, who are currently 2 weeks old and quickly losing their cute, fuzzy appearance. I suppose some pictures should arrive at some point on here.
So here you have it... my first post. The icebreaker. Hopefully more to come in the future...